Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Increases Stock Holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. $ASO

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 4.0%, now owning approximately 5.78% of the company, valued at $175.4 million.
• Several hedge funds have also made significant increases in their positions in ASO, with increases ranging from 25.6% to 1,041.7% among various investors.
• Analysts have mixed views on ASO, with target prices varying from $52 to $65, and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $58.24.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO - Free Report) by 4.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,846,410 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 147,395 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 5.78% of Academy Sports and Outdoors worth $175,438,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 9,114 shares of the company's stock valued at $524,000 after acquiring an additional 598 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,342,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 724.9% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,625 shares of the company's stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 1,428 shares during the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 25.4% in the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 5,166 shares of the company's stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 41,439 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,384,000 after purchasing an additional 1,217 shares during the period.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Academy Sports and Outdoors news, Director Christopher Lee Turner sold 4,400 shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.48, for a total transaction of $195,712.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 7,084 shares of the company's stock, valued at $315,096.32. The trade was a 38.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 3.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on ASO. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $54.00 to $48.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Loop Capital set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a report on Monday, July 21st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Academy Sports and Outdoors has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $58.24.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors stock traded down $0.10 on Monday, reaching $53.85. 1,177,560 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,264,310. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $50.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 0.29. Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. has a 1-year low of $33.34 and a 1-year high of $64.61. The company has a market cap of $3.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.30.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 10th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by ($0.13). Academy Sports and Outdoors had a return on equity of 19.62% and a net margin of 6.55%.The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. The firm's revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Academy Sports and Outdoors has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.450-6.25 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 19th were issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. Academy Sports and Outdoors's dividend payout ratio is 9.56%.

About Academy Sports and Outdoors

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a sporting goods and outdoor recreational retailer in the United States. The company outdoor division comprises camping products, such as coolers and drinkware, and camping accessories and equipment,; fishing products, including marine equipment and fishing rods, reels, and baits and equipment; and hunting products, which includes firearms, ammunition, archery and archery equipment, camouflage apparel, waders, shooting accessories, gun safes, optics, airguns, and hunting equipment.